


One Last Favour

by Fenchurch87



Series: Tales of Kirkwall (and Beyond) [15]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age II
Genre: Angst, Family Feels, Friendship, Love, Multi, Sibling Love, Siblings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-29
Updated: 2018-07-29
Packaged: 2019-06-18 05:22:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,431
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15478563
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fenchurch87/pseuds/Fenchurch87
Summary: Varric helps Marian Hawke and Anders leave Kirkwall. Originally written in response to a writing prompt on /r/dragonage.





	One Last Favour

“Hawke?”

The word echoed around the estate, cutting into the oppressive silence. Varric had spent many evenings here, all of them filled with joy and laughter. Not this evening, though. Today there was an overwhelming atmosphere of sadness, as if the house itself were grieving.

He heard movements above him, followed by footsteps on the stairs, and then Hawke appeared in the doorway. She had clearly tried to wipe her face and tidy her hair before coming to meet him, but the effort had been in vain. The battle had ended several hours ago, but she hadn't changed out of her armour and she still had a smudge of dirt across her forehead. Her beautiful face was red and swollen from crying. _I could kill Blondie for doing this to her_ , he thought darkly. _Except killing him would make everything a hundred times worse._

She led him into the sitting room without a word and sat down near the window. He took the chair across from hers and waited for her to speak. She seemed to be having trouble meeting his eyes.

“I'm leaving Kirkwall.” Hawke kept her gaze fixed on the floor. “With Anders.”

He nodded. He had suspected this would happen ever since that moment at the Gallows when Hawke had lowered her dagger.

“I know I should hate him, Varric, but I can't, even after everything. And he needs me. I can't leave–”

He interrupted her quickly. “You don't have to explain yourself, Hawke. Not to me.” He tried to keep his voice light. “So, you're leaving. Do you know where you're going?”

“No.”

“Do you know how you're getting out of Kirkwall?”

“No.” He thought he saw her shoulders slump slightly as she continued to stare at the carpet.

He nodded again. “Alright. Leave it with me.”

“Varric, no.” Hawke finally looked up. “You've done far too much for me already. I need to figure this out myself.”

“I insist.” He saw her open her mouth again to protest and he held up a hand to cut her off. “Please, Hawke.” He adopted a mock-pleading tone. “Let this foolish dwarf do one last thing for his best friend. Please?”

Hawke sighed. “Okay, you win. I don't know what to say, Varric.” He could see fresh tears forming in her green eyes, threatening to spill over.

“You don't need to say anything. Meet me here tomorrow, just before dawn.” He stood up and headed for the door. “You know I'm only doing this for you, Hawke. Blondie can go choke on a steaming lump of bronto dung for all I care.”

“I know.”

*****

“What are you all doing here?” Hawke stared around the room in surprise.

“They've come to see you, of course.” Varric had sent word to the whole Kirkwall gang as soon as he left the estate the previous evening. “You didn't think you could leave without saying goodbye to everyone, did you?”

“I wasn't expecting anybody to be here. It's so early, and–”

“Don't be ridiculous, Hawke.” Aveline stepped forward, hands on her hips and a stern expression on her face. “Of course we're here.” Her voice softened as she wrapped her arms around Hawke and hugged her tightly. “I'll miss you.”

“Move over, big girl.” Isabela was next, all jokes and bravado, but her smirk wavered when she moved to embrace Hawke, and afterwards there was a tightness around her eyes that hadn't been there before.

“Goodbye, Hawke.” Merrill looked a little unsure of herself when her turn came. “We had fun, didn't we?”

“We certainly did.” Hawke smiled fondly and enveloped Merrill in a warm hug.

Varric hadn't been sure if Fenris would come, but the elf was there, leaning against the wall. He hung back, waiting for the others to finish speaking to Hawke before he approached. There were no hugs this time, but there was a handshake and a brief exchange of words.

“Kill a few for me, won't you?” Hawke said, earning herself a wolfish grin from Fenris.

Varric wondered how the rest of that conversation had gone. “It's time to go, Waffles,” he called.

Hawke managed a weak laugh, but her face quickly turned serious again. “Alright. I'll go and fetch Anders.”

*****

Anders looked so wretched that Varric almost felt sorry for him. His face was deathly pale, and his dark brown eyes stared blankly ahead, seeing nothing. Hawke held his hand tightly, and he followed her without uttering a word. _She spared his life because she loved him, but now he has to live with what he's done._ Perhaps death would have been kinder.

They left the estate through the underground passage into Darktown, wearing hoods to hide their faces. Varric didn't think there would be many people around this early in the morning, but he wasn't taking any chances. He watched for Templars as they walked, and he was aware of Hawke doing the same behind him. Fortunately, they met no trouble on their way out of the city. It seemed that luck was with them today.

Carver met them not far from the city gates, and Hawke greeted her brother with enthusiasm. The siblings had never had the easiest relationship, but they seemed to have grown closer in recent years. They smiled at each other and shared a long embrace.

“What are your plans now, Carver?” Hawke asked as they broke apart.

“I don't have to go back to the Wardens straight away, so I thought I might stay in Kirkwall for a while. I'll come and visit you once you've settled in.”

“Damn it. I was hoping I'd finally got rid of you.”

Carver chuckled. “No such luck, I'm afraid.” He pulled Hawke in for one last hug. “Take care, sister.”

*****

“Well.” Varric stopped at the top of the hill and gestured towards the house in front of them. “Here we are. You can get everything you need in the village down there. Don't worry about the people. They won't ask questions. Although you might want to keep your heads down and avoid telling anyone your real names.”

Hawke nodded and glanced around at their surroundings. “This place reminds me of Lothering,” she said with a small smile. “I was happy there. I can be happy here, too.

_I certainly hope so._ “Take a look inside,” he suggested. “I'll be out here.”

Hawke took Anders by the hand again and led him into the house. She came back a few minutes later, alone.

“So, what do you think?” he asked her. “I know it isn't much. I could have found somewhere better if I'd had more time, but you didn't exactly give me a lot of notice, Hawke.”

“It's perfect.” The small smile returned to her face. “We don't need much. Just somewhere safe with a roof over our heads. This is more than I dared to hope for.”

They sat on the grass in silence for a while, watching the sun creep across the sky. He didn't want to leave. Leaving would mean that this six year adventure had come to an end, and he wasn't good with endings.

The sun had passed its highest point when he stood up. “Well, I should be getting back to Kirkwall.”

“Okay.” Hawke stood up too. “Thank you, Varric. And sorry.”

He stared at her. “What are you sorry for?”

“Everything! You've been a better friend than I could ever ask for, and I've brought you nothing but pain and trouble in return.” Hawke frantically wiped her eyes as the tears she had been holding back all day finally started to fall.

“That's not true.” He put his arms around her and hugged her fiercely. “You know that's not true. You're the best friend I've ever had, and I'm dreading going back to Kirkwall without you. That's the truth, Hawke.”

She hugged him back just as tightly. “Oh, I don't know. I'm sure you'll have an easier time of it without me around. Life will be much more peaceful, I think.”

“Much more boring, you mean.”

He may have had something in his eye when he let her go, but Hawke kindly pretended not to notice. She kissed him on the cheek and said “Goodbye, Varric”, and then she was walking back towards the house.

She was gone. He stared at the spot where she had been standing, feeling nothing but grief and emptiness. And then a thought occurred to him. A thought that made him smile and sent him hurrying down the hill with a renewed sense of purpose.

He had a new book to write.

 


End file.
